�Does it hang straight?� a tall redhead asked the woman helping her into a dress so white that it edged into the ever-so-slightly-blue range.

�Of course it does, you paid enough to have it made,� replied her companion.

�Yes, but does it look like it hangs straight?�

�It looks fine,� the second woman responded with exasperation while tugging on one long sleeve to get it to match its counterpart on the other side.

�Just fine? Do we have time to go out and get another?�

�No! It�s gorgeous, ravishing, not to be believed how beautiful.� The other woman, tall and red-headed as well, was about ready to punch her friend, wedding or no wedding. �He�s not going to wait for you to go out and get another, especially since you�re only going to wear this one until he can drag you away somewhere private and strip it off. By the way, I like that little lacy number you�re wearing under it. Besides, I really don�t think you could get another wedding dress in your size in the next fifteen minutes.�

There was a knock at the door, and the assistant hurried over to intercept whoever it was before they could open the door and just walk right in, like the last three times. A handsome, translucent man stood just outside the portal. The woman moved to block his view into the room.

�Don�t bother,� he smirked, �I�ve seen it all before. And I do mean all.�

�Shut up, Mick. And by the stars, tell them all to cool their jets and not to send anyone else to check on us. She�s still got another,� she checked her wrist chrono, �thirteen minutes before the music starts.�

�Fine, but he�s beginning to get anxious.� The holographic head jerked in the direction of the groom and his men, already lined up and in their places for the ceremony. �He seems to be afraid that she might snag someone�s speeder or swoop and make a break for it. Oh, and some squalling brat has already pushed a grubby hand through the backside of that cake.�

The woman at the door let her shoulders slump and her eyes close in frustration momentarily before stiffening her spine and standing straight once more. This was her best friend�s wedding and she was going to make sure it went smoothly if it killed her. And at the rate things were going, it just might. �Fine, calm him down, and just tell the catering droid to turn it around so that no one sees and to serve from that side first after the cake is cut. No one will know the difference.�

�It�s not rhyscate, is it?�

�Actually, yes, that�s what tradition calls for.�

�Who made it?� The question sounded innocent enough, while being anything but.

�Beat it before I go in search of an electro-magnet.�

� �Beat it.� Where does that expression come from?� he mused to himself before the squat black droid -- scarred all the way up one side, across his conical head, and down the other side by recent weld marks -- and his projected image of a dark-haired man in a formal tux obediently wheeled away, whistling a jaunty Corellian tune. The woman at the door scowled after him, recalling that the words to that particular song were about a man left at the alter by the woman he loved. The tall redhead stared after him for a moment, indulging for a brief period in very uncharitable thoughts, before returning to her tasks.

�Who was that?�

�Just Mick.�

�What did he say?�

�Your man�s got a case of jitters and is afraid you�ll bail on him.�

�Bail on him?! I�m the one who proposed!� the woman sounded properly outraged, but lapsed back into jitters of her own. �Do you think he really thinks that?�

�I don�t know, guys are weird that way sometimes. Now hold still while I get that veil on.�

�The dress-maker said to be very careful, that it was Alderaani spider-silk ...�

�Then hold still. I don�t want it to catch on those fancy clips in your hair.�

�Careful-�

�Yeah, oop-, ah, got it, wait-�

�What?�

�Hold Still!�

�Holding.� The tall woman straightened away from trying to see the top and back of her own head and froze. And waited. �Well?�

�Almost, there, got it. Now, don�t move a muscle while I get it pinned properly.�

�Oww, that was my scalp.�

�It�ll heal. Relax.�

�The cake-�

�Is fine,� she lied through her teeth.

�And the food-�

�Is ready and waiting and paid for. Take a couple of deep breaths and remember that you�ve got him for good now, no matter how the reception or anything else goes. And if he leaves ...�

�Leaves?!� There was a whole lot of disapproving durasteel in that tone and only the tiniest hint of panic.

�Just remember," her friend soothed, "If you love something, set it free. If it doesn�t come back-�

�Hunt it down and kill it,� the bride-to-be interrupted sternly in what could only be described as a menacing and dangerous tone of voice.

Eyebrows jerked skyward in response. �Well, umm, not was I was going to say, but applicable nonetheless, I suppose. Now, just stay calm and take slow measured steps down the aisle. The musicians are going to play the whole thing regardless of how fast you move, so there�s no point in rushing it.� Flowers rustled and a small, simple bouquet was slapped into hands that were popping each other�s knuckles again in a nervous reaction. �I�ll take the bouquet from you for the ring exchange and give it back after the kiss.�

�You did tell him to keep it short? I don�t think I could handle standing there waiting for very long.�

�Yes, I told him. Didn�t I promise that I�d take care of everything?�

Muddy green eyes stared into clear green and both misted over in happy tears. The two women turned nearly identical watery smiles on each other and then embraced tightly, holding each other for a long moment of comfortable silence.

�Oh, I�m crushing your dress, and don�t mess up the veil. I�ll kill you if you knock it crooked before the kiss.�

�I won�t.� Those eyes locked on each other again. �Thank you. I don�t know if I�ve told you this nearly enough over the last couple of weeks, but really thank you.�

�It�s what friends are for. Now-� she checked her chrono again. �Oops, better hurry before he sends the best man in here to find you.�

Both women hurried to the door and stopped for a second as they peeked out at the small chapel half full of people. It was not a large crowd. Close friends and family -- friends that were family -- a sprinkling of interested Jedi, a reluctant Qui-gon, a cheerful and grinning Dex, even Jemmiah and a distinctly disappointed looking Griff Rendar. Not a lot of people, but a more loyal bunch would have been impossible to find anywhere in the galaxy. At the end of the aisle was the groom, looking splendid if nervous in his white tux, his men ranged out beside him, and at the beginning, waiting just outside the dressing room door in fact, was M1-CK, ready and willing to give the bride away.

�Samla, they�re all waiting for you.�

The tall ex-smuggler gave the knight�s shoulder a grateful squeeze, then stepped up next to the droid and rested her hand in his extended gripper while Krelo stepped ahead of them to precede them down the aisle. As soon as the bride-to-be�s slippered feet (�Slippers?! Why can�t I wear my boots? It�s not like anyone will be able to see them under all that fabric.� �Traditions, Lil- Samla. It sets a bad precedent if the bride is wearing knee-high, black leather boots at the wedding.�) touched the aisle�s carpet, the music started up and Samla Tragoni stepped slowly, boldly, even confidently, but not calmly, toward a future she would never have foreseen for herself in a million years.